SHILLONG:
Twitter removed blue tick verification badge from users who didn’t subscribe to their paid service – which is only ₹650 per month on the web and ₹900 on the mobile app.
And guess what, most of the high-profile individuals in India lost their verified status, including Rahul Gandhi and Mamata Banerjee.
But wait, not all leaders lost their blue ticks! Prime Minister Narendra Modi didn’t lose his.
Similarly, blue ticks of a few of the political leaders from the Northeastern states remain intact.
It looks like only a few BJP officials, Assam CM Himanta Biswa Sarma, Tripura CM Manik Saha, and Arunachal CM Pema Khandu, were able to buy the Twitter blue subscription and keep their badges.
Others like Meghalaya CM Conrad K Sangma, Mizoram’s Zoramthanga, Sikkim’s PS Golay and Nagaland’s Neiphiu Rio lost their blue tick.
Why this sudden change?
Twitter, under the “wise” leadership of Elon Musk, has made significant changes in its coveted blue checkmark verification process, leaving even Bollywood superstar Amitabh Bachchan tick-less.
But don’t worry, folks, Big B has now joined the elite club of Twitter Blue subscribers, proving once and for all that money can, indeed, buy anything, even authenticity.
Now, instead of authenticating high-profile individuals, journalists, politicians, and establishments, the blue tick has become a symbol of those who have forked over their hard-earned cash to subscribe to Twitter’s paid features.
Who needs real authenticity when you have a verified phone number, right?
And if you’re worried about missing out on the fun, don’t worry, only 1% of Twitter users have signed up for “Twitter Blue,” so you’ll be in good company.
The question now remains: will CM Conrad Sangma follow suit and shell out ₹650 every month to get back his verification badge?
Is this badge truly worth all the fuss? Or will it lead to a new era of imposters who can buy their way into Twitter fame with just a few clicks?
It’s a thought-provoking dilemma, and only time will tell how Twitter’s new policy will impact the world of social media.
But hey, at least we can all rest easy knowing that the true mark of authenticity is now just a subscription away.
ALSO WATCH: